5 April 2019
Media Release
Little Dreamers Australia is excited to celebrate and recognise the achievements of our state’s incredible young people this Victorian Youth Week (5 April-14 April).
Each day, our organisation works with youths aged four to 25 who care for family members with disability, illness or addiction. Whilst it’s difficult to attain an accurate figure, The Institute of Child Protection Studies estimates there to be two to three Young Carers in every Australian classroom.
Being a young person in a caring role is far from easy. School, employment and social life become increasingly difficult to balance with the additional responsibility of providing care for a family member. These youths simply do not receive the recognition or support they deserve.
Of those who identify as Young Carers, 96 percent of primary Young Carers do not go on to finish high school, 60 percent are unemployed and 50 percent live below the poverty line, according to ABS data collected between 2002 and 2012.
It is Little Dreamers’ mission to ensure these incredible young people are never limited by their caregiving roles and always know where and how to access necessary support.
Our organisation will participate in the Victorian Youth Week festivities in multiple capacities.
On Saturday April 6, Little Dreamers will run a free, Victorian Government sponsored event titled ‘Adulting’ For Young Carers. The day will assist up to 100 young people with essential life skills they may not previously have had the chance to learn, such as taxes and superannuation, resume building, reading food labels, and more.
On Sunday April 7, the Little Dreamers ‘Dream Team’ will participate in the Herald Sun/Transurban Run For The Kids to raise money for The Good Friday Appeal and Young Carers.
Throughout the week, Little Dreamers also will be sharing inspiring stories of young people accomplishing great things both locally and nationally, as a means of celebrating and acknowledging the youth of today.
We encourage anyone to get involved by registering for our free event at bit.ly/VicYouthWeek, donating to our fundraising page at bit.ly/LDDonateNow, or spreading the word on social media using the hashtag #VictorianYouthWeek2019.
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About Little Dreamers
Little Dreamers Australia is Australia’s largest not for profit organisation working to improve the quality of life for Young Carers and Special Siblings across the country. The team at Little Dreamers does things differently. The organisation co-designs its programs with Young Carers to ensure their vision aligns with those they are supporting. The Little Dreamers mission always remains front and centre: to break down barriers, empower Young Carers and their families and create supportive care communities, with a vision of long-lasting change.
For further information and media enquiries, please contact Emma at emma@littledreamersonline.com.
Website: www.littledreamersonline.com
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